The Big Three and the Failure of Auto-eroticism

Article by

The plight of the American car manufacturers or the Big Three as they would like to be called, is that they never understood the business they were in. Instead of selling transportation they thought they could get by with just selling image. American cars are symbols of wealth and power. The rich and powerful aren’t concerned with fuel efficiency and you don't care about the environment. Why should you? American cars are designed to reflect a man’s virility or compensate for the lack there of. They are chrome-plated penis enhancers sold by sultry models to compensate for our shortcomings.

They are chrome-plated penis enhancers sold by sultry models to compensate for our shortcomings.
This model worked well in the 50s and 60s; the economy was strong and. everyone wanted a big American car. We made cars with 450-horsepower engines and enough room to seat a baseball team. Even if you weren't rich and powerful, you could feel like you were. Who cared that it got 4 miles to the gallon? A gallon only cost a quarter; so did a pack of cigarettes. And Madison Avenue knew how to sell the sizzle! Dinah Shore wanted you to see the world in a Chevrolet. A Ford Mustang made you a stallion and Daisy Duke just loved being in a Dodge Charger. Never mind that these behemoths could barely hold together until the last payment. Just trade it in on the next model and start the romance all over again.

But then came the 70s and the 80s. We found out that the Saudi's were not our friends. They were our dealers, and the cost of a fix was going up. Did the Big Three get the message? No! They invented the Minivan and then the SUV and then the RV because now it was not just sex-crazed men who were making the car buying decisions; women were buying cars as well. Of course they were getting their own cars because it took two incomes to support an average family of four, but that just meant more opportunity for the Big 3 to sell more hype. It was now sexy to be a liberated woman who could do it all. Safety on the road was equated to size, not quality, and the Big Three got bigger. - They were living the multi-million dollar good life. Meanwhile, American Jones for gasoline was getting worse and the Saudis had us by the nozzle. It was only a matter of time before the wheels came off and here came the Japanese with a bumper jack.

Women figured out real quick that a man couldn’t spend his paycheck on them if it was already in his tank
Japan was a nation totally decimated as a result of WWII. No natural resources to speak of and the harsh realization that there would never be an automobile fancy enough to make their penises look bigger. Their course was clear. Make a car that was low cost, fuel efficient and reliable; a direct kick to the groin of America. The Japanese could not believe their good fortune. Americans were buying more and more Japanese cars and fewer of their own. It was even becoming cheaper for the Japanese to build the cars on US soil because the American worker was getting paid less than the average Japanese. It was time to make their move and they made it. Right into the luxury car market: Toyota made the Lexus, Nissan made the Infinity. And how did the Big Three react? They made the Cadillac Escalade and the Hummer. Brilliant! Just what the world needed: a four-wheel drive pimp mobile and militarized minivan.

But what really drove a stake through the heart of this three-headed monster was the Hybrid. Oil prices may rise over night but it takes time to develop a Hybrid vehicle and for the Big Three, time had run out. At $4.00 a gallon, there was nothing sexy about a car with an empty gas tank. Women figured out real quick that a man couldn’t spend his paycheck on them if it was already in his tank. Men figured out real quick that the SUV’s siren song on the showroom floor became a leather upholstered ball and chain.

So now the party’s over. The Big Three have nothing to offer anyone, much less anything sexy. The 650,000 active members of the UAW are highly trained to do only one thing, go on strike, and they want us to bail them out. The only problem is, you cannot bail out a boat that doesn't have a bottom and the bottom fell out of this market a long time ago. The 34 billion dollars that the Big Three have asked for would be better used retraining the UAW to do meaningful work. I have no idea what that work would be but surely there is another industry where you go to work each day and watch a robot do your job.

So I say let them fail. They dug this hole they're in; let’s push in the dirt and be done with them. If they would have been smart they would have gone to Merrill Lynch and got a sub prime loan years ago and had it insured by AIG.


Tags:                




Latest stories in The Agora

Slide Your Way To Success: Creative Workspaces for the Easily Amused

Obama Ushers In Environmentally - Friendly Era

The Camping Virgin: Finding Meaning without Plastic or Cash in 48 Hours

The Big Three and the Failure of Auto-eroticism

UFO: Here, or There?






ChuckM says on 2009-02-22 19:38:50 about The Big Three
A great article. Dan is one smartest men I know. Hit the nail on the head.










Mad Dog says on 2008-12-25 17:12:51 about Dan Edwards article on the 'Big 3'
I have known Dan Edwards for almost 50 years, we grew up together. He's probably the smartest guy I know. He is NOT some political pundit, or talking head on the local or national boob tube, just an average guy. He served his country in the Navy (for which I forgave him long ago, he'd have been a GREAT Marine), working on classified nuclear stuff under water, and went on to have a career with one of the biggest and best known information & technology companies in the world, then retired and began a new career, making folks smile & laugh. His article is tongue in cheek and slightly sarcastically humorous, but make no mistake... HE HIT THE NAIL RIGHT ON THE HEAD. When the UAW was formed, it was a GREAT idea and performed the tough task of protecting the average working man from being bent over the barrel by the BIG corporations. But, as the years have passed THEY have become the 800 pound gorilla in the corner of the room when the automakers started working on how to make bigger profits. No body came along to bail me out when my business went belly up, both times. And, I don't know of anyone personally that ever got bailed out of a losing business, unless they had wealthy and indulgent relatives. Our economy became the greatest in the world (for a good long while) but economic requirements in a free market world finally caught up with us. Toyota/Honda/Nissan/Hyundai/etc. started providing cars that got better mileage, were technically more proficient and advanced, and to top it all off they sold them to us for less money than 'The Big 3'. It was only a matter of time before it caught up to us, and THEY knew that. I love my American made Cadillac, and have driven Caddys for about 35 years. The other day I parked next to a top of the line Toyota that someone had just purchased, the sticker was still in the window. Curiosity got the best of me and I read the window sticker, only to find that it was better equipped than my top of the line Cadillac DTS (with EVERY option available in '07) and it cost almost $20K less than mine, and had a longer (better) warranty. If 'The Big 3' and the UAW didn't see this coming a long time ago, then they should have reconsidered who they hired to captain their gradually sinking ship. I prefer to 'Buy American' whenever I can, but... my next car will probably come from Japan. Unless, of course, 'The Big 3' pull their collective crainiums our of their rectums and take a big breath of the fresh air of genuine economic truths.









Post Comment

 
 Your nickname
 
 About what
 
 Your comment
 
Are you human? How much is 1 + 2?
 







Dan Edwards
none

I enjoy writing and performing stand-up Comedy and often can keep the two separated



GOD IS DEAD. HE IS NO MORE. HE IS KAPUT.
There is no such thing as church law, sharia law or any other religious law. The law of the land, Government law, or International law applies. Religious entities simply do not have the legal power or authority to create or apply laws.



ngola consol
Genre: Pop
super adrican latin sound enfused with afro pop, mostly genr...

Who Are These Men
Genre: Pop
Who Are These Men - four young composers from the heart of n...

NewNobility
Genre: Indie
New Nobility peace-rock band http://myspace.com/newnobility...

Rad Wolf
Genre: Other
Hailing from Fort Worth Texas, Jacob Shelton makes music in ...

JO&CO
Genre: Acoustic
Five diverse musicians who bring their own style to everythi...

Shannon Corey
Genre: Pop
Mix together some Tori Amos, Fiona Apple and Ben Folds to ge...

The Fireman's Daughter
Genre: Acoustic
The Fireman�s Daughter is a female Americana duo based out...

Bruce Unger
Genre: Alternative
Bruce is singer/songwriter in a folk/country vein, reminisce...

The Simple Pages
Genre: Indie
Above all else you must know about us is that we are three g...

Hearts in Pencil
Genre: Indie
"Taking folk and stamping it through a new wave filter, thei...











ADVERTISEMENTS
Anxiety - Anxiety, Depression and ADHD related information.



The Cheers magazine: About us | Contact us | The Cheers Story | Advertising
Work with The Cheers: Writers guide | Write for us | Writer application | Reporter application 
The Cheers:Terms and conditions | Privacy policy | Sponsoring | Sitemap
Sister sites:Thoughts about | Free online stock market game | Wifi hotspots and wireless laptops | Brand Lady 
Listen: Online radio station | Unsigned musicians | Music reviews | Listen to unknown bands
Travel World: World travel locations | Morocco Agadir travel
Travel: Travel blogs | Travel destinations | Hotel reviews | Beer around the world
Watch: Watch movies online | Watch free tv online | Watch heroes online
Trade: Virtual stock market | Fantasy investing competitions | Free day trading tips
Learn: Business videos online | Business networking | Business strategies | Business ideas
Copyright © 2004-2009 The Cheers magazine / sex & nude people